A Bayshore man pleaded guilty to committing aggravated vehicular homicide that happened in March of 2023.
Intoxicated and speeding Carlos Orellana Mata, 36 of East Northport had been driving a 2015 Infiniti QX60 SUV on Jericho Turnpike in Elwood. When Mata crashed into the rear of a tractor trailer, he immediately killed his passenger on impact, 22-year-old Lenel Umana Guitierrez Lopez, of East Northport.
When police arrived at the scene it was obvious that Mata was intoxicated, he was reported to have slurred his words and bloodshot eyes. He was taken to Good Samaritan Hospital where a toxicology report revealed a .15% blood alcohol concentration. Search warrants revealed an earlier blood alcohol concentration of .20% and revealed the car was travelling over 80 miles per hour before the collision.
“This defendant was operating a vehicle while being twice the legal limit of drinking and in the process, claimed the life of yet another young Suffolk County victim,” said District Attorney Tierney. “We see this far too often where people are losing their lives through the carelessness of others on the roadways and aggrieved families are left without a loved one because of someone else’s lapse in judgement. This has to stop.”
On May 8, 2024, Orellana Mata pleaded guilty before County Court Judge Stephen L. Braslow for the charges of Aggravated Vehicular Homicide, a Class B felony, Manslaughter in the Second Degree, a Class C felony, and Aggravated Driving While Intoxicated, an unclassified misdemeanor. He will return to court August 7, 2024, and faces from 3 to 9 years in prison.